This invention relates generally to the field of infant care and more particularly to an apparatus for facilitating infant feeding.
During the first few months of life, an infant is exclusively fed either breast milk or formula. Formula fed infants are generally fed by placing the infants head in the crook of a care givers arm, and feeding the formula to the infant with a bottle. Breast-fed infants are fed by raising the infants head to the breast. As many who have experienced the art of breast-feeding know, a certain amount of dexterity, coordination, and often discomfort is associated with getting the infants head properly aligned with the breast and keeping it there during the feeding.
During the first few weeks of an infants life, feedings may be needed twelve or more times a day. Often, the feedings may last in duration anywhere from twenty minutes to an hour. Because of the amount of time that is spent in this task, it is important that it is comfortable for both the infant and the care giver. However, there are some discomforts associated with feeding. Although the infant is small, the weight of the infant on the care giver""s arm may cause increased fatigue in the arm. For breast-fed infants, because the crook of the arm is not always perfectly aligned with the breast, a nursing mother frequently either has to lift the child up to the breast or alternatively bend her upper body down towards the child. Both approaches, repeated frequently during the day, may cause pain and discomfort to the mother.
A number of products have been provided to alleviate this discomfort. One product, for example, is a generally U shaped pillow, meant to be placed around the waist of the care giver. The care giver may rest the arm holding the infant on the pillow, thereby raising the infant to a comfortable height for breast or bottle feeding. However the nursing pillow is difficult to position because it does not fit easily around the care giver and hinders the ability of the care giver to lean backwards into a chair. The difficulty of positioning a nursing pillow is a real problem, since the pillow may need to be repeated positioned throughout the feeding. For example, the pillow is repositioned each time the infant is burped and when the infant is switched from one breast to another. Often, the nursing pillows become more of a hindrance to the nursing process than an aid.
Another drawback of the nursing pillows is that their size makes them difficult to transport. Because there are a large number of items that must be transported with the child, it is not always feasible to add a large nursing pillow to the pile.
A further drawback with typical nursing pillows is that they are not readily cleanable. Feeding can be a messy task. However, it is desirable to undergo the feeding in as clean a condition as possible. Most nursing pillows are only spot cleanable and therefore may not necessarily meet the sanitary standards desired by the care giver.
According to one aspect of the invention, a pillow feeding sleeve is provided. The pillow feeding sleeve is unitary, cylindrical in form, and advantageously includes filler. During use, the pillow feeding sleeve is slipped over the arm of the care giver such that is generally centered over the care givers elbow. When the arm is bent to position the baby for feeding, the sleeve forms a pillow against which the infants head may rest. The pillow acts to lift the infants head up to a breast or bottle for feeding, thereby reducing fatigue and increasing the comfort of the care giver and the child.
According to one aspect of the invention, an infant feeding apparatus includes a sleeve having an interior lining and an exterior lining, with the interior and exterior linings adjoined at each end of the sleeve, the sleeve for extending over the arm of a care giver and forming, when the arm of the care giver is bent for feeding, a pillow for resting the head of the infant.
According to a further aspect of the invention, an infant feeding sleeve includes a first cylindrically shaped lining having a first and second end, a second cylindrically shaped lining, disposed within the first cylindrically shared lining, and joined to the first lining at the first and second ends and filler, disposed between the first and second cylindrically shaped linings.